Dampening Effect
by SparksJSH
Summary: The team struggles to find out why Emma couldn't use her powers when she is brutally attacked by an unknown source.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Marvel Entertainment owns all the characters associated with Mutant X. I am merely borrowing the characters for entertainment purposes and am making no money off this story.  
  
Time Line: Takes place in the first season before their powers grow.  
  
Warnings: Violence  
  
Summary: The team struggles to find out why Emma couldn't use her powers when she is brutally attacked by an unknown source.  
  
Dampening Effect By: SparksJSH  
  
"Tell Adam we appreciate the supplies."  
  
Emma deLauro smiled thinly at the small wiry guy standing before her. No matter how many times Adam sent her on supply runs to different safe houses, it was an activity she never could quite get used to. She wasn't sure when she had developed this shyness around people she barely knew but was confident she could trace it back to a time when her new mutant abilities had surfaced full strength. It was sometimes scary wondering how people might react if they learned she had telempathic abilities, even people who had their own abilities to worry about.  
  
"You're welcome, Darius. If you need anything else, let us know."  
  
"Are you sure you won't stay for dinner? There's plenty."  
  
"Thanks, but I'd better be heading back. Earlier it looked like that storm might come in earlier than predicted. I don't want to get caught in it." Her words were true. The thunderstorm that had sent threatening clouds in yesterday looked like it would rear its ugly head at any moment but her reason for not staying had more to do with the storm of emotions within herself. Every since she'd left Sanctuary earlier that day, she'd fought an unerring sense of gloom that went far beyond her natural reticence. The feeling was so strong she'd been convinced someone had been following her.  
  
She wished she would be taking the beat-up old van she'd driven to the safe house but the supply-laden vehicle was needed at the safe house. She'd be walking back to Sanctuary. Stepping outside the safe house, she raised her ringed finger to her mouth. "Adam, I've delivered the supplies. I'm heading back now."  
  
"Jesse is only a few miles from your location; want him to pick you up?"  
  
Emma almost declined. She wanted to face her fears not run from them but the sudden streak of lightening followed close by thunder changed her mind. "Thanks, Adam. Tell him I'll meet him at the back lot of warehouse 9."  
  
The promised ride allaying her fears, Emma slowly made her way toward her rendezvous point with her teammate. The thunder masked all sounds around her so she never heard someone approach her until rough hands grabbed her arms and threw her to the ground. Fiery pain exploded up her right elbow as it made initial contact with the hard ground. She twisted around, ready to fight her attacker but a sudden sharp kick to her ribs took her by surprise, stealing her breath.  
  
Emma tried to form mental images of her attacker in pain in an attempt to save herself but found to her horror that her mutant abilities wouldn't work. Her assailant rained painful blows on her and darkness nibbled at her consciousness. Her cheek felt as if the facial bones had been crushed by a brutal backhand and she tasted blood in her mouth.  
  
A knee pressed solidly in her abdomen and a face leaned close to her ear. "What's the matter, Freak? Can't fight your way out of this? Freaks like you shouldn't be walking around pretending to be normal. Freaks should all die."  
  
Lightening flashed overhead and Emma caught the steely gleam of a knife. He held it so she could see it, obliviously enjoying the fear reflected in her eyes. He pressed the blade against her forehead, the sharp metal slicing her tender skin. "Now everyone will know what a freak you are." The oily voice warned her as he made two more careful incisions.  
  
Emma felt helpless. Why wouldn't her abilities work? Why couldn't she fight back, save herself from this brutal attack? She was powerless even to call her friends for help. "Please don't do this." Emma found herself begging amidst tears.  
  
"SHUT UP!" The man warned, setting the knife aside and pressing his hands against her throat, squeezing off her ability to breath. Bright dots appeared before her vision before darkness threatened to consume her.  
  
Before she completely blacked out, Emma felt his hands leave her throat and felt him flip her over onto her stomach. A chill ran up her back as he used the knife to slice open the back of her shirt. She wanted to scream but her lungs weren't even cooperating about taking in the air she desperately needed. Something pressed against her back but to her relief there was no pain. After a moment he roughly grabbed hold of her hair and jerked her head backward, almost choking her again. "You'll live, Freak, long enough to serve as a warning to others and then I'll come back and finish you off for good."  
  
He shoved her head back toward the concrete that was beginning to be wet, either from her blood or from the rain that was beginning to fall. A sharp, steel-toed boot caught her in the ribs, once more turning her over with its force.  
  
For a moment Emma blacked out from the pain and from relief that the attack was over. After a long moment she heard Jesse calling to her over com ring, his voice slightly concerned. With every ounce of strength she had left, Emma lifted her hand.  
  
"Help me." The words were almost inaudible even to her own ears but the plea brought an immediate response.  
  
"Hang on, Emma. I'm tracking your signal. I'll be there in a second." But Emma was unconscious before Jesse finished his sentence.  
  
**********  
  
"Jesse, what's going on?" Adam demanded as he listened to the exchange between his two teammates. Emma had sounded desperately hurt. What could have happened in the brief amount of time since he last talked to her?  
  
"Hang on, Adam. I just got a visual on her. It looks like she's unconscious. EMMA!"  
  
Adam could do nothing but wait for Jesse to give him more information. Shalimar entered the room and saw his worried expression. She shook her head.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"Something's happened to Emma. Jesse's with her now."  
  
**********  
  
Jesse knelt beside his friend and teammate. Even in the dark it was obvious she'd been beaten severely. She had made no response to his calls. With a silent prayer that he wouldn't cause further damage, he gathered her in his arms and raced back to the car.  
  
He gently laid her in the passenger seat and checked her pulse. It was erratic but present. Already bruises were standing out on her pale skin. He could only hope he hadn't arrived too late. Running around to the driver's side, he hopped in and spun around toward Sanctuary. He broke every speed law in existence as he rushed his injured friend toward medical help. The whole while, he was filling in Adam on what was going on. Pulling into the garage, he was grateful to see Adam and Shalimar waiting for him with a stretcher. As Jesse removed Emma from the car, Shalimar winced. "Who did this?"  
  
All Jesse could do was shake his head.  
  
**********  
  
"So Adam talks to her after she left the safe house and five minutes later she's been savagely beaten? How does that happen? Why didn't you get there sooner?" Brennan demanded as Jesse paced back and forth. Jesse glared at him.  
  
"I didn't know there was a problem until I got to where I was to meet her and she wasn't there. Do you think I would knowingly allow something like this to happen?"  
  
Shalimar left the medical unit. "Fighting amongst ourselves won't help anyone, least of all Emma."  
  
"How is she?" Jesse stopped mid-pace.  
  
"Lucky. She's got a couple of broken ribs and a bunch of bruised ones. Her left cheekbone is fractured and she has a mild concussion. Bruises on her neck indicate her attacker tried to strangle her. There's barely an inch on her whole body that's not black and blue. To make matters worse, he carved an F on her forehead."  
  
"Why an F? Could it be his initial? Some clue as to who he is?" Brennan mused. "Why didn't she use her abilities to fight him off?"  
  
"You call that lucky? Is she awake?" Jesse asked.  
  
Shalimar shook her head. "No, not yet. Adam is staying with her until she does. Jesse, you got to her in time. If she had stayed out in the rain much longer, she might have died. She's badly injured but she's going to be okay. Look it's late; we aren't going to know anything until she wakes up. Adam suggested we get some rest in the meantime."  
  
Brennan threw himself in a chair and Jesse resumed his pacing. Shalimar nodded and perched in a chair next to Brennan. "Yep, that's what I told him." 


	2. 2

Chapter 2 Waking up  
  
The first thing Emma was aware of as consciousness returned was pain. There wasn't a spot on her body that didn't hurt. For a moment she didn't remember why she should be in such pain but then the memory of the attack came crashing back. She could hear her assailant moving near her. Her abilities had failed her earlier but now as she tried once more, she discovered she could defend her herself. He wouldn't hurt her this time.  
  
When Adam first felt the tendrils of tightness around his throat, he was caught by surprise. But then he realized Emma was projecting images onto him with her mutant abilities. That knowledge did him little good as he was forced to his knees. "Emma." he choked out. "Emma, you're safe."  
  
"ADAM!" Shalimar screamed at the sight of him writhing on the floor. Realizing Emma was responsible, Shalimar gathered the injured young woman in her arms and gave her a gentle shake. "Emma, wake up. It's Adam you're hurting."  
  
Emma's eyes rolled open and after a moment she vaguely realized what was happening. She released her mental hold on Adam and slumped wearily against Shalimar. She began to cry.  
  
As soon as Adam had recovered, he joined Shalimar at Emma's side. The young woman looked at him through tear-filled eyes. "I'm sorry."  
  
She grimaced at the pain the two words caused and at the raspy, almost inaudible tone in her voice. Adam touched her shoulder. "Easy Emma. It's going to take a few days for your voice to return to normal. Try not to use it if you can. Nod yes or no, are you in pain?"  
  
Emma nodded. She wanted to wipe the tears from her eyes but found her hands were too shaky and weak to obey her brain's commands. She shivered. "I'm cold." She admitted huskily.  
  
"No wonder, your shirt is cut open in the back. Let me help you change into." Shalimar cut off suddenly as she noticed something on Emma's back. "Adam, come here."  
  
Despite the pain, Emma tried twisting her head to see just what had alarmed Shalimar so. Adam looked at Emma's back and frowned. He shook his head. "Well, now we know."  
  
"Know what?" Emma demanded, growing more and more alarmed. "Adam, what's going." Her voice died out completely before she could finish.  
  
Adam tried to look reassuring but Emma could feel his worry just the same. It didn't help her any to see, though she tried to hide it, Shalimar's feral eyes were practically flashing fire. What had that monster done to her? Vaguely, she remembered him cutting her shirt and the pressure that followed but there had been no pain. She blinked back tears. "Adam?"  
  
"Your attacker cut your forehead three times. Do you remember that?" Emma nodded, unsure what that had to do with her back. "The three cuts formed the letter F. We couldn't figure out what it meant but he left a message on your back that I think explains it."  
  
Despite her shaky, weak hands, Emma reached behind her to feel for a wound but felt nothing. Her eyes pleaded with Adam to tell her just how bad it was. Adam sighed. "It looks like he used a black magic marker. He wrote three words; Die Freaks Die."  
  
Emma shuddered. "He kept calling me a freak. Somehow he knew I had mutant abilities. He wanted to kill me. He wanted to kill me and I couldn't."  
  
Adam hugged her as she began to sob. His heart was breaking for his young friend. He felt guilty that she was having to go through this and wished there was something more he could do.  
  
"Hey, Kiddo, you scared me pretty badly back there." Jesse entered the room and kissed Emma gently on her uninjured cheek. Knowing her other teammates needed the reassurance that she was going to be okay, Adam relinquished his hold on her. As Jesse gently took Adam's place holding her, he hoped she wasn't reading him his emotions. He didn't want her to know that he didn't think she looked too much better now than she had when he found her lying on the ground unconscious. "I wish I'd gotten there quicker. I'm sorry, Emma."  
  
"You didn't know; you couldn't have." Emma swallowed what little saliva her battered throat would produce and grimaced. Shalimar quickly brought her a glass of water and even held it for her when it was obvious the younger girl's hands were too shaky to hold it by herself without spilling it.  
  
Adam filled a syringe with an amber liquid and returned to Emma's side. Ordinarily he wouldn't give someone with a concussion this painkiller and sedative but he knew it was the only way that Emma wouldn't talk and cause herself more pain. "This will ease the pain and help you get some rest. In the morning, when you feel stronger, we can all sit down and figure out who is responsible for this and how we are going to stop him."  
  
Brennan frowned. "You don't think it was Eckhardt and the GSA? Emma, did you recognize the guy?"  
  
She shook her head eyeing Adam as he prepared to give her the injection. She wasn't sure she wanted to sleep. She knew she was safe here in Sanctuary, physically at least. She wasn't sure, however, how safe she was from dreams that would force her to relive the attack. She was about to protest when she saw the worry in each of her teammates' eyes. She'd proven her weakness earlier by not being able to fight off her attacker; she wouldn't further prove it by admitting her fears.  
  
"Brennan, Jesse, why don't we step outside and let Shalimar help Emma into something more comfortable." Adam suggested firmly. He waited until both Jesse and Brennan had said goodnight to their injured comrade and left before he too squeezed her hand. "Emma, I know it might be difficult but give into the medicine and get some rest. You've been through something terrible but you are safe now. We'll be nearby."  
  
"Adam." Emma began, her voice thick with pain and raw emotion. "My psionic abilities. they wouldn't work. Why. why wouldn't they work?" Before Adam could even frame a reply, the painkiller he'd given her took effect and Emma slipped back asleep.  
  
"Adam?" Shalimar frowned. "How could that be? Why wouldn't her mutant abilities work? There was nothing wrong with them when she woke up."  
  
Adam wouldn't look at the feral. "I don't know. Nothing showed up in the scan. A couple of ideas come to mind but they are very farfetched. Maybe she can give me more to go on once she wakes up. Do you mind helping her into more clothes and staying with her until I get back? If I know Brennan and Jesse as well as I think I do, I'd better go head them off from rushing off into the night on a futile manhunt."  
  
Shalimar smiled, remembering the fight she'd interrupted earlier. "Either that or they are back at each other's throats. Don't get me wrong, Adam. I want us to make this scumbag pay for what he did to Emma but I'm glad you didn't press her for details tonight."  
  
Adam nodded. "I think it would have been crueler than the actual attack. And for the record, no one wants this guy as bad as I do." Especially if Crueben is involved he added to himself. 


	3. 3

Chapter 3 Starting to Heal  
  
"You'll live, Freak, long enough to serve as a warning to others and then I'll come back and finish you off for good. For good.for good."  
  
Emma sat up with a start as her assailant's final warning reverberated in her dreams. Her heart was beating wildly and she could feel sweat standing out on her forehead. As her heart rate slowly returned to normal, she looked around the medical unit. She was all alone except for Adam who was sound asleep sitting upright in a chair.  
  
"Sleeping Beauty awakens." Jesse entered the room smiling. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"I'm not real sure." Emma admitted. Her voice was still raspy but talking no longer made her wince in pain. "You're up early. Not even Adam is awake yet."  
  
Jesse laughed and pointed to the clock on the wall. "I don't call noon early. We figured you needed the rest and none of us wanted to wake Adam. I think he only fell asleep a couple of hours ago. But for what it's worth, you look a lot better than you did last night."  
  
The barest of smiles touched Emma's lips. "I haven't seen a mirror but if that's true, I don't want to know how I looked last night." She looked away, her eyes clouding over. "I've never felt so helpless in my life, Jess. I've been attacked before but never beaten. I couldn't defend myself." Tears filled her eyes once more.  
  
Jesse awkwardly hugged her, not wanting to hurt her. "I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation. Adam will figure it out when he wakes up. In the meantime, are you hungry? I made omelets for a late breakfast. I could bring you one."  
  
Emma wrinkled her nose. "No thanks, I've had your omelets before. What I really want is a shower. Just knowing what's written on my back is driving me crazy."  
  
Jesse gave her a dubious look. He was fairly certain that Adam wouldn't want her up moving around just yet. "You sure you're up for that?"  
  
"Don't treat me like an invalid, Jesse." Emma pushed him away in an uncharacteristic fit of anger. She barely hid the grimace of pain the movement caused her. But just as quickly as it came the anger left and she hung her head. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't.. It's just. I think I need to be alone for awhile."  
  
The Molecular studied her for a moment. The last thing she needed, in his opinion, was to be alone. He knew her well enough to know that she would just brood over what happened. Intellectually he knew that but still he didn't want to upset her further. He reached out to help her up but then realized something. "You can't wash that off, Emma. It's magic marker. Do you know how hard you'd have to scrub to even fade it out a little? With your injuries, I don't think you could do it."  
  
"I can't let that monster's words stay on my skin. He attacked me and I couldn't do anything to stop him; don't tell me I still can't do anything."  
  
Emma looked so miserable that Jesse's heart went out to her. It was obvious she was struggling not to cry. He held up his hand motioning for her to stay put. Leaving the lab for just a few minutes he returned with a magic marker in his hand. "Raise the back of your shirt."  
  
Emma looked at him dubiously. Seeing the almost goofy grin on his face, she finally gave in. Jesse sat behind her on the bed and uncapped the pen. Emma had to suppress a shudder as the feel of the marker against her back brought back memories of the attack. Sensing her discomfort, Jesse struck up a monologue of humorous, mindless chatter as he went to work turning the ominous threat into something she could live with until the marker faded out.  
  
*****  
  
Adam woke to the sound of giggling. For a moment, he continued to sit there and watch his two youngest teammates, especially Emma. The physical effects of the attack were obvious even at a distance. Visible bruises starkly stood out, violent purple and blue, against her otherwise pale skin. The young woman's arm protectively cradled her battered ribs. But Adam was glad to see the desperate terror that had been so evident in her eyes had faded. He'd been worried that she would have a hard time bouncing back from the attack emotionally. He smiled; he should have known better.  
  
"So what's next? Drawing on the walls?"  
  
A little of his worry returned at how quickly Emma jumped at the sound of his voice. Jesse cupped his hand protectively over her shoulder. After a moment the fear retreated but was still partially there.  
  
Jesse capped the pen and set it aside. "Just cleaning up some unfinished business."  
  
Crossing to where his teammates were sitting, Adam admired Jesse's artwork. No trace of the words Die Freak Die remained. In its place was a cute and cuddly teddy bear. Leaning over, he kissed the top of her head. "How do you feel?"  
  
Emma sighed. "My head hurts and I don't think there's a spot on me that's not sore."  
  
"You're voice sounds better but don't over use it. Any dizziness or nausea?"  
  
"No, it's okay. Adam, why wouldn't my abilities work? What was wrong with me?"  
  
Adam pulled a stool close and sat down. "I don't think anything was wrong with you. I spent most of the night looking over your scans and there is no reason why you shouldn't have been able to project images onto your attacker. I think your attacker shielded your powers so you couldn't defend yourself."  
  
Jesse frowned. "How is that possible, Adam? Does this guy have some new technology or something?"  
  
"Or something." Adam looked around. "Where are Brennan and Shalimar?"  
  
"They didn't want to wait around doing nothing so they went to the safe house to talk to Darius and the others to see if they saw anything out of the ordinary yesterday."  
  
"They did what?" Adam's eyes darkened in sudden anger. Emma flinched against the sudden shift in his mood. Seeing that, Adam forced himself to calm down. "Brennan and Shalimar should have known better. They don't know what they are dealing with. It's not safe."  
  
"Adam, Brennan and Shal can take care of themselves." Emma argued. Although she didn't say it, both Jesse and Adam heard an unspoken unlike me in her voice.  
  
"If I'm right, none of you are safe from this guy." He spoke into his ring. "Brennan, Shalimar. Answer me."  
  
"Adam, we have a problem." Brennan's voice sounded strained.  
  
"Get back here immediately, both of you."  
  
"We're okay Adam. Emma's attacker was here before us. Darius and the others are dead." 


	4. 4

Chapter 4 Helpless  
  
"Darius is dead?" Emma eased off the medical bed and walked away from the two men. "It's my fault. I must have led him straight to them."  
  
Upon learning about the deaths of the new mutants at the safe house, Adam had ordered Brennan and Shalimar back to Sanctuary. Now he moved to comfort the distraught young woman. "Emma, it's not your fault. You mustn't think that way."  
  
Emma pulled away from him. "How else should I think? He attacks me and hours later we discover that Darius and the others have been murdered. They were in a safe house; how safe could it be when I lead the bad guys right to them?"  
  
"Adam, I get the feeling you know who is responsible. Who are we dealing with here?" Jesse hoped by returning the focus to the actual problem, Emma could quit blaming herself.  
  
"That's what I want to know." Shalimar insisted as she and Brennan came in. Her jaw was set and her whole posture was ready for battle.  
  
Adam sighed. "Back when I worked at Genomex, I worked with a man named Maxamillin Crueben. He made Mason look like a saint. When we began seeing the full effects of our experiments, he became outraged. He felt the mutations we were seeing develop were too dangerous and that we should eliminate the situation before it got out of hand."  
  
Emma shivered. "You mean he wanted to kill the children of Genomex."  
  
Adam nodded. "More than just wanting to, he actually killed two or three before we knew what was happening. As soon as we learned what he was doing we confronted him. It was a tense moment and somehow; I still don't know exactly how; there was some sort of accident. Crueben developed the ability to dampen mutant abilities. It's as if those abilities never existed whenever Crueben was in close proximity with a new mutant."  
  
"So that explains why Emma couldn't use her powers. But how was he able to kill Darius? Even without his feral strength and heightened senses, Darius should have been able to fight back. I saw his body; he never had a chance. Crueben shouldn't have been able to get the drop on him."  
  
"But I'm helpless, right? Thanks Shal." Emma turned away from the team but not before they caught her hurt expression. Her shoulders slumped and her head lowered. Without another word, she headed for the door.  
  
Shalimar reached out to touch her friend's arm but the Telempath avoided her. Once Emma was gone Shalimar looked at the others. "I didn't mean."  
  
"We know, Shal." Adam assured her the Feral. "Emma knows it too; she's just dealing with everything that's happened. Jesse, will you."  
  
"I'm already on it." Jesse quickly followed Emma out of the lab.  
  
"So if Crueben hates mutants so much why haven't we heard from him already?" Brennan asked.  
  
"I thought he was dead. The way he saw it his being able to dampen mutant abilities made him just as much a mutant as the ones he was out to kill. He couldn't handle that knowledge. He threw himself into finding away to reverse what happened to him. When he couldn't do that he attempted to kill himself. Everyone thought he had succeeded."  
  
"Yeah from Emma's bruises and the bodies we saw at the safe house, if he's a ghost, he's a very strong ghost." Shalimar folded her arms across her chest. "Okay, we know who's responsible. How do we stop him?"  
  
For a moment Adam said nothing. At long last he shrugged. "I don't know."  
  
***********  
  
Jesse didn't have to go far to find Emma. She was right outside the lab, slumped to the floor holding her ribs painfully. He squatted beside her. "Em? You shouldn't be up. Let me help you back to bed."  
  
"Stop it, Jesse!" The anger she'd exhibited earlier in the lab was back but it didn't make it up to her eyes. The hazel orbs merely reflected pain. "I'm not helpless."  
  
Reaching out, he touched her cheek. "No, you're injured."  
  
"Because I was helpless." Emma sniffled. "Shalimar even said so." The last vestiges of control she had on her emotions left her and she collapsed against Jesse in sobs. For a moment he held her, allowing her tears a moment of freedom but then he took her bruised face gently in her hands so she could see his face.  
  
"No she didn't, Emma. None of us think you are helpless. The only person who thinks you are is you."  
  
"Maybe none of you think I'm helpless but I sure felt like I was, lying on the ground completely defenseless. I was powerless both because my abilities wouldn't work and because I couldn't fight back. I need to learn how to defend myself powers or no powers. I want to learn how to fight." She bit he lower lip before continuing. "And I want you to teach me."  
  
Jesse nodded. "Okay, as soon as your ribs have healed."  
  
"No, I want to learn now. Crueben is still out there and he's not going to wait until I'm healed to attack again."  
  
Jesse wiped her tears away with his thumbs. "Don't worry about Crueben. We'll take care of him."  
  
Emma shook her head and used the wall to push herself up to a standing position. "Don't you see, if I depend on the rest of you to fight my battles, I really am helpless. I need your help, Jesse, not to shield me from Crueben but to help me fight back. Will you help me?"  
  
Jesse squeezed her hand. "Of course I will."  
  
For the first time since hearing about the death of the other new mutants, Emma smiled. She couldn't bring herself to tell him why she was so insistent that they not wait. She didn't want to tell him that Crueben wasn't through with her; that he'd promised to come back and finish the job he'd started. She couldn't admit it to her friend but she made herself a promise; this time, she'd be ready for Crueben. 


	5. 5

Chapter 5 Fighting Back  
  
Emma gauged the distance between herself and the punching bag. Taking a deep breath and ignoring the ripple of pain through her ribs, she lashed out in a roundhouse kick. The cry that came with the kick was one of pain rather than one meant to instill terror in the bag about to be attacked. Jesse was behind her in a second, holding her steady until the pain eased and she regained her balance. With a grim expression of determination, Jesse nodded. "Good, try it again."  
  
Brennan, Shalimar and Adam were watching from a distance. Brennan frowned and turned to Adam. "This is crazy. Adam, can't you stop this? He's going to kill her quicker than Crueben. She's not ready for this."  
  
"I disagree. I wouldn't normally condone this type of training with her injuries but with Emma right now, I think it'll help more than it'll hurt."  
  
Shalimar's eyes never left her two friends in the simulation area. "How so?"  
  
"I can treat Emma's physical injuries but the longer the emotional injuries go untreated the harder it's going to be for her to get back into action. You both heard her earlier; she believes that we think she's helpless. No words from us will change that unless she believes otherwise."  
  
"Why Jesse?" Brennan asked, his voice holding a tint of jealousy and hurt. "Both Shal and I are better fighters."  
  
Adam smiled. "That's exactly why Emma asked Jesse. Brennan, you learned to fight out of necessity. Your less than legal activities forced you to learn to defend yourself. A mistake out in the streets could cost you your life. You demand perfection in yourself and in others. Shalimar, you are a fighter by nature. You thrive on the thrill of overcoming your opponent. Emma didn't want or need the pressure the two of you would unconsciously put on her. Jesse's different. He knows how pressured he felt from the simulation training and the frustration of not always succeeding. He'll have the patience to teach her what she needs to know without overdoing it."  
  
Before Shalimar or Brennan could be hurt by Adam's words, Jesse proved their mentor right. He handed the Telempath a towel and a bottle of water. "That's enough for today."  
  
"No." Emma shook her head, refusing the offered towel and water. "Let's keep going."  
  
The Molecular shook his head. "Emma, Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was a well trained fighter. You're doing great but it's enough for now. Go take something for the pain and I'll bring you some lunch."  
  
Finally Emma nodded. She eased herself down on the step and took a small sip of the water. "Jesse."  
  
When she didn't continue, Jesse sat beside her. He waited patiently for a moment and then gently poked her in the shoulder. "What is it?"  
  
"Thanks for helping me with this. It means a lot." She smiled at him wanly. But then her expression turned pensive and she stared out into space.  
  
Worried he may have pushed her too hard too fast, Jesse frowned. "Emma, what's wrong?"  
  
"I was thinking about the attack on the safe house. Shal's right; it doesn't make sense. Darius should have been able to fight back regardless of the dampening effect. Crueben must have finished the attack before Darius realized that his powers wouldn't work. So why am I still alive? He could have easily killed me."  
  
Jesse considered this for a moment. Finally he shrugged. "I don't know. From Adam said, I don't think Crueben can sense what powers he dampening. Maybe it was a random decision or maybe he somehow knew you were apart of Mutant X and wanted to put us on alert."  
  
Emma shook her head. "There's more to it than that. There has to be, and finding what that reason is will be what leads to defeating Crueben."  
  
Jesse kissed the top of her head and then helped it up. "Just remember, you aren't in this alone. We are a team and we'll solve this as a team."  
  
*******  
  
Crueben waited in the shadows and watched the young woman with long blonde hair leave the small coffee shop. He'd been watching her for days, waiting for the perfect time. She was a freak; he'd seen her use your catlike reflexes to take out a GSA agent. He'd known from that moment she'd be the next to die. He'd bided his time until he could find her alone. Now was the perfect time. She looked distracted. She'd never know what was coming.  
  
He approached quickly. With anyone else, she would have sensed his presence long before he grabbed her arm. Before she could recover from the shock of not being able to use her powers, he shoved a long bladed knife deep into her abdomen. He liked the way her eyes widened in shock and then pain. She looked down at the knife still embedded in her stomach and then at the man who had attacked her. Then her eyes rolled back in her head and she collapsed. Her cup of coffee hit the ground only seconds before she did.  
  
Crueben pulled the knife from her dead body and wiped the blood on the black jacket the blonde wore. Whistling contently he disappeared back into the shadows. 


End file.
